


Headmaster Snape

by EliLeFey



Category: Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-11
Updated: 2019-01-29
Packaged: 2019-03-29 21:10:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,618
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13935492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EliLeFey/pseuds/EliLeFey
Summary: What happened at Hogwarts that final year, while Harry and Friends were hiding.  Severus has to maintain Hogwarts, protecting students by whatever means necessary.Eli works with Firenze and other Faeries keeping watch over the creatures put in danger from the Death Eaters.  The murder of the unicorn will never be forgotten or forgiven, and invoked a clause in the treaty that allows the Fey to protect beings endangered by human conflict.She has to watch over Neville, who is slowly realizing Severus is not the enemy.Lily le Fey assumes guard over Harry, from the astral plane.





	1. Chapter 1

Eli was at home that night and was about to get to bed when she got a message in her mirror. It was Firenze, who had connected with her system by looking into a pool of water. 

“Alice's son is in trouble, Eli,” he said. “The boy is in the Forest being led to a werewolf, and I just found out and not sure I can get there in time . . .”

“I've got a locator on him, let me grab a weapon . . . werewolf, you say?”

She dashed into the studio and grabbed her bow and a silver tipped arrow. She'd get only one shot. The mirror showed Neville, who'd finally realized that the boys who'd led him here were not as friendly as he thought.

Eli's charm sent her a message. His sudden panic registered on it, and she focused on him in the mirror. She drew back the arrow, releasing it so that it slammed into the werewolf's chest, delivering an instantly fatal dose of venom. 

Neville felt the whoosh of the arrow past his face. The werewolf screamed, the blood exploding from his heart dark red in the moonlight. 

Neville watched as the beast transformed back to human. 

 

Eli dashed downstairs with her sword, Yojimbo had saddled himself, and she quickly programmed the portkey and they apparated to the Forest, beating Firenze to the scene. 

The boy's associates, his cousins from Durmstang, wearing masks, froze in their tracks. The eldest hissed out, “Currunt fratres salvet” and they ran off.

They didn't get far. The Centaurs rounded them up and perpwalked them to Hagrid. 

Neville felt relief. The spell they'd used to paralyze him faded and he struggled to regain control over his body. 

Then he saw the Dementors move in.

 

A green spark appeared in front of him, expanding in a spiral to form Eli riding Yojimbo. She leaped off his back, Dyrnwyn's flames lighting up the scene. The horse jumped to guard Neville's back. 

Eli raised her hand, and with a small gesture of a single finger, her patronus appeared, spiraling over the three of them. The Dementors scattered. Eli put Dyrnwyn back in the scabbard, hanging it from the saddle. 

She looked down at the corpse, then yanked out the arrow, wrapped the tip in a handkerchief, and handed it to Neville. 

“So what happened here?”

“Roland Minor said Harry was waiting for me in the Forbidden Forest . . . “

“And you believed him?”

“But he's a Gryffindor!”

“Yeah? So was Pettigrew, that deplorable vermin.”

“How did you get past the guards?”

“His cousins . . . I met them during TriWiz, they had passes.”

“They put some sort of paralyzing spell on me and went behind me, . . .then I felt the arrow go past my face and you were here.”

They heard hoofbeats, and Firenze galloped up with two other Centaurs. The largest of them grabbed the body by the ankles and dashed off. 

“Thanks for helping, Eli,” Firenze laughed. “Nice shot!”

“Always willing to help keep the Forest clean,” Eli laughed back. 

Firenze scratched Yojimbo behind the ears and gave him some seasoned jerky, then followed his brothers into the darkness. 

 

“You ride Yojimbo, Neville.”

They walked to the edge of the Forest nearest Hagrid's place. Severus was waiting for them near a standing stone glowing in the moonlight, in a clearing surrounded by yew trees. 

“Eli, take Longbottom to the Farm. You have been signed out of the dorms for the night. Don't speak a word to anyone. Roland Major has been informed her younger brother decided to transfer to Durmstang and the cousins were here to help him move his things.” 

Eli nodded, and portkeyed to Yojimbo's room in the stable. Nils brought him some dinner and Eli led Neville to the main house kitchen. She gave him a glass of medicated berry wine, which helped him relax. 

Jeanne-Marie brought him some chocolate cheesecake, 

“So, you faced a werewolf and Dementors? Tough night, dear . . . drink the wine and eat the cheesecake, and we'll get you tucked in for the night.” 

She smiled at him. He felt better already. She had that effect on people. 

 

 

“You know you can't tell anyone, especially not Harry and friends, about me,” Eli said. “I have to be officially neutral. Severus covers for me, of course, but he's being watched closely.”

 

Neville was still holding the arrow in his left hand as he ate. “How did you do that? I've heard about this sort of mirror magic but never saw it done.”

“All my mirrors are charmed, but you can improvise, even use pools of water once you know the process. Firenze called me that way, and I put a locator charm on you a long time ago.”

“Firenze?”

“Yeah, he is a good friend and the only decent seer you've got . . . your cover story is you got permission to use the library here at the Farm for materials they don't have in the Hogwart's library. You're of age and you can sign out nights, and don't worry, Severus has your back.” 

“Why does he hate me so much?”

“What do you mean? He's like that to everybody! You need to stop taking it so personally.”

Neville managed to swallow before bursting out laughing.

She was right!

“Meet me in the library when you finish eating,” Eli said. 

“I've been keeping track of your schoolwork,” she told him when he joined her. “You need some help on your Potions, and I've got the latest journals, and marked the articles about the stuff you're doing in class that should help you.”

 

Severus told Minerva only enough of what happened to silence her questions about the location of Roland Minor. An Emergency Owl Alert was sent to his parents, who were not particularly surprised to hear that their youngest son was in trouble. 

“He's been influenced by his cousins, they are siding with The Dark Lord,” his father explained. 

Severus knew they had acted without any authority, they had set up a plan to get Riddle to let them in, and Riddle didn't like children, especially when they didn't wait for permission. 

It was the Rolands at Durmstang who instigated, Karkaroff took the brunt of the blame for not keeping his wards under tight control.

Longbottom's murder would be too much to cover up, plus, he was such a trifling wizard, not worth bothering about. 

Minerva didn't want anyone to know of a Gryffindor siding with the Dark Lord. She was worried about Neville, until she was told he was at the Farm and would be back tomorrow. 

She took the elder Roland, who was a sixth year, aside to counsel her about her brother. The girl, Aoibhell, knew her younger brother was 'darkhearted' and her cousins were horrible, magical delinquents, the lot of them. 

She begged Minerva not to reveal any of her brother's conduct to anyone. Minerva was more than happy to promise not to tell anyone. 

Another coverup. For The Greater Good, of course. 

 

Eli took the floo to Severus's sanctum. 

“How's Neville?” he asked when she entered. 

“He's fine, shook up, of course.” She laughed when he told her what happened to the Hogwarts student. 

“Serves the little shit right. Minerva's pulling a Dumbledore, again. Does anyone know who the werewolf was?” 

“No one looks too hard for vanished werewolves. The Centaurs took the body away for a sky burial.” 

The parents were shocked, 'but not surprised' by their youngest's conduct, and more than willing to have him sent for 'correction' at Durmstang,

“Happens in the best of families, eh?” 

“Karkaroff will be in for it, Tommy doesn't like it when too much attention is drawn by something like a murdered student. Augusta would raise an unholy ruckus if anything were to happen to her grandson.” 

“What a way to start my term as headmaster,” Severus sighed. 

“You knew the job was dangerous when you took it,” Eli sighed. 

“So did you.”

“You're worth it,” 

He smiled at her.

 

The next morning Neville ate breakfast with Jeanne-Marie, and she let him ride her horse, Secretariat. Nils rode one of the Faerie guard horses. Nils proposed a point-to point, ending at the Hogwarts gate. 

"Don't let him out all the way, we'll keep it to a handgallop, "Nils said, as they warmed up their mounts. "They run a lot faster than any equine here, you know. A bit frightening to most their first time. Besides, that horse retired when no one else would take him on. Undefeated.

"You don't need a mindgem?" Neville asked. 

"No, don't need one, I can do this to all horses, you know, it's in my blood, my DNA." 

They agreed on the route, along the riverbank, up and over to the main road, then double back to the Hogwarts gate. There were fences and a ditch to jump, the bridlepath was used for training and practice by the Faerie Army stationed at the Farm. 

"I'll let you set the pace," Nils said. 

 

They set off, as the mists began to float up and disappear in the sunlight, along the river in a narrow gorge that marked the boundary between Faerie and Terran land. 

Neville had never felt like this, like flying on land, he could feel the muscles of the horse beneath him, feel the horse's enjoyment out of running in the morning mists. He let Secretariat pick the speed, just fast enough so the other horse could barely keep up. The chestnut was aware of his superior speed and liked to remind all the other horses he was the fastest. 

They reached the gate and Neville dismounted, the guards smiling. "Headmaster Snape told us to expect you." 

He took the saddlebags with the journal articles and went straight to Professor Slughorn, who was thrilled to get the journals.

"I don't get out to the Farm since my dear Cordelia died, it hurts too much," he said. "Your mother spent a great deal of time there, you know."

Neville nodded. "Jeanne-Marie and Eli sent their best. And a bottle of mead." He handed Horace a box. "With some truffles."

"It pays to be nice to Faeries," Horace smiled. 

Neville grinned.


	2. When Things Go Bad, Time To Throw a Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Horace plans an Equinox Gala as Hogswart staff tried to keep things as normal as possible in the new order.

When Harry, Hermione, and Ron ran off, Lily assumed responsibility for looking out for Harry, from the astral plane. She told Severus to let her handle her son, he was needed to try and keep the students still in school safe. 

“He's old enough to be on his own, his friends are watching out for him,” she told her father. “Don't worry, I'll call for help if things get out of control, but I think he'll be all right, or as well as could be expected under the circumstances.” 

The High Priestess and Crone told Severus they were aiding Lily in her surveillance, to reassure him that his duty to watch over Harry was on hold. He had to get things under control at Hogwarts. 

 

It wasn't easy, at first. He figured out that he had overestimated the intelligence and insight of the Death Eaters who moved into positions of power at the Ministry, and the flunkies who had been sent to Hogwarts more to get them out of the way.

They were arrogant, sadistic, self centered, self satisfied, and totally delusional, with extreme and toxic personality disorders, truly hideous beings, inside and out, but easy enough to overpower with his training and talent. 

Essentially, you had to be very stupid to think that Riddle's way would lead to anything but Perdition. 

 

Horace was a survivor. He refused to take sides. Keep your head out of the crossfire, that was all he could do. His talent of pouring social oil over troubled waters was put to the test; he managed to keep the peace at his parties by sheer willpower and charm. 

He wished he could go to the Farm, but he knew it was out of the question. Word came down from on high that good MinistryMinions didn't associate with that sort. 

He truly missed the Morgans, Cordelia, Takeshi, and Eli. Now that it was Faerie controlled territory, those on both side of this, what should we call it, he mused, conflict? Insurgency? Were more or less non grata. 

Hagrid was working with Firenze. The two went back a long ways, and trusted each other. 

A Death Warrant was put out on Tom Marvolo Riddle AKA “Lord Voldemort” for the murder of the unicorn in the Forbidden Forest . All those allied or associated with this person were not welcome in the Forest, and they forfeited any guarantee of safety, should they set foot in that territory. 

 

The raven who attached herself to Eli during the war moved into Hagrid's place to communicate with Jeanne-Marie at the Farm as needed to provide medical aid to those creatures in need of it. He didn't want to risk a mirror, not after how he had been invaded by that horrid pinkclad Dolores Umbridge, she hated all things Faerie. The feeling was mutual, Jeanne-Marie assured him that year, she hardly ever left the Farm. When he went to Hogsmeade, they met at the Hogshead. 

Abe could now openly acknowledge his relationship with “those Morgan women.” and welcomed the Fey and their friends. The embassy staff made it a point to patronize local businesses. They were generous with their gifts, mostly the drinks and food from Avalon. 

It was illegal to buy or sell such things, but it was all right to possess and consume them, according to the Treaty. It was Takeshi Morgan's legacy, a contract so perfectly written and beautifully crafted that no one could find a loophole. 

“Raised a Samarai and educated by Druids,” as he used to say. “Doesn't matter if the pen or the sword is more powerful, I am a master of both,” 

The Death Eaters by this time had established themselves at Malfoy Manor and other houses of the elites. Nott gave them his townhouse that he never used, since his heirs lived there. They were rarely seen in Hogsmeade, which suited the residents fine. 

It was hoped the storm would pass over them. 

 

Neville was treated with more respect by the Griffyndors. In his last year as a student, he planned on being a witness. He worried continually about his friends, but took comfort in knowing that their different gifts combined was very strong, a triangle of power, as he dreamed of them one night. 

He saw them, hovering in the air, shimmering like the aurora borealis. When they joined hands, they formed a triangle, shining in colors he'd never seen before. 

Hermione spoke. “Be strong, Neville, we will stand together.” 

 

He told Luna of the dream the next day. She smiled at him. “Yes, we have strength together, we here at Hogwarts have our duty, to be ready if called to action.” 

He nodded. Eli's influence was getting him to think like a soldier. 

“I'm going to the Equinox party on the Farm,” Luna said. “Can you come with me? They're sending a carriage. My father never misses a sabbat on the Farm if he can help it.”

“No, I can't, Slughorn has me sitting at the high table at his party.” He scowled. “Sitting next to that Greengrass viper.” 

Luna laughed. “Very pretty and she can bite. I hear Snape is letting you go to use the library on the Farm?” 

“Yes, because I'm my mother's son and she was considered part of the clan, her mother's law firm handles their legal matters, you know. They're even letting me ride Faerie horses.”

“What does your Gran think of that?” 

“She doesn't ask, and I don't tell. I'm a legal adult now, anyway.” 

Minerva was thrilled that Neville was spending time on the Farm. She missed the place, but those she had been friends with were gone now. That's the worst about getting older. Those you care about leave you, and then you die, leaving behind those who care about you. 

Severus never mentioned the Farm or Eli. She tried dropping hints, wanting to know how everyone was, but he would invariably change the subject. 

 

He was seen riding a silver gray Faerie horse with Eli and Yojimbo, and they attended concerts at the Hogshead back yard stage, sitting in the mezzanine patio with Faeries. 

Minerva never set foot in that place. On her nights off, she went to a dance club on Nocturne Alley to drink and dance into a trance state, just the music and her body. 

Severus took Eli there from time to time on his rare nights off, which never coincided with hers. 

He did not fraternize at all now that he was headmaster. His manners were perfect, he was civil to all of the staff, and was his always condescending, sneering self to the students. He kept them at arm's length, even the Slytherins, Minerva noted. 

Tonight she met her usual partner, Yuri Zhukov. He'd left Durmstang, giving his notice when Cedric Diggory was murdered. He did not return with the ship, and moved to London. He gave lessons, and choreographed for the opera company and their ballet company. 

He joked that it wasn't his fear of Karkaroff and the Death Eaters as his desire to dance with her, reminding him of their partnership in Prague. They were on the balcony that opened out to the street, along the length of the building, adorned with planters filled with night blooming fragrant flowers. There was a restaurant below, which was popular with the opera house crowd. Yuri loved to watch the people below and critique their outfits. He had an impeccable sense of style she admired. 

He'd designed her dress and accessories, biased cut silk satin, the ballerina length skirt that swirled around her in a perfect shade of red, a laced bodice and cocoon jacket that caressed her body and displayed her impeccable line. 

“Things are getting ugly everywhere, unless you can escape to the Ring of Fire, or the MidAmerican District. They want to stay out of this. Are you sure you're safe in that school, surrounded by Dementors?”

“I can take care of myself, and the students need me more than ever, I can't desert my post. You know that.”

“Yes, I do, 'let's face the music, and dance,'” he said, leading her to the floor.

“Are you safe here?” she asked.

“I never was a part of whatever it was Karkaroff was doing with that . . . thing. I just was a drill instructor, never a part of his inner circle. In fact I was hired to get the boys in shape for the TriWiz, none of his pals can dance, or even march correctly. And they did look good, didn't they? Their weapons drills and close order wandwork was better than anything Hogwarts could do.” 

Minerva laughed. Hogwarts had looked like clumsy oafs next to the polished precision of Durmstang and the languid grace of Beaubatons. “I tried.” 

 

Too soon her leave ended and she had to floo back to her post. 

“On your next night off, I have tickets to the Opera, dress accordingly,” 

 

She needed these breaks from the tension of Hogwarts. Although Severus maintained a professional approach to his duties, the new staff send in by the Ministry were a constant stressor, especially since much of their abuse was aimed at Griffyndors. It took all of her self-control to maintain a civil face to those dreadful bullies. 

That Umbridge woman was bad enough. Poor Sybil never quite got over her, and increasingly shut herself up in her tower cloister. Now this. 

Hagrid remained loyal to Severus. Firenze trusted Severus, the unicorns came to him, that was good enough for him. He knew about the murder of the unicorn. 

Eli brought him the Faerie report. And he had a copy of the warrant issued by the Druid lawyers, authorizing the use of force to stop and detain Thomas Marvolo Riddle, AKA “Lord Voldemort.” Abe sent a raven when Hagrid was in the pub and wanted to meet with Eli or one of the Embassy guardians. 

 

Minerva, Pomona, Horace, Hagrid and Sybil pledged to try and teach the students to the best of their abilities, and stonewall the Death Eaters who'd invaded the school. They'd survived Umbridge, they'd get through this, too. 

Horace cried a lot lately. He hated to see the look of fear, the cringing servility of the collaborators, and missed Harry, Hermione, and Ron. Well, Harry and Hermione. Severus had raised the standards for Potions since he'd taken over the post, Horace was impressed with how the OWL and NEWT scores had improved under his watch as Potions Master.

He could feel the storm approaching. He'd survived Riddle before. The most pitiful were the children of the elite, who were being fed to the beast, without informed consent. 

He continued to throw parties at Hogwarts for the students and staff, and the shifting Ministry brass, went to the ballet, opera, and symphony in season, dressed better than anyone. So many of his cronies, gone, to death, like Cordelia, banished, or self-exiled. Flitcraft always had passes and they chaparoned field trips for the music students.

Just Act Normal. 

Horace was working on his ritual to call Cordelia on the next Samhain, to get her advice. He would summon her in the library, his favorite part of the Farm mansion. Tabby, the elf, wanted to visit with her friend and was helping him plan the menu and ceremony. 

He was busy planning the Equinox Ball, this year it would take over most of the Hogwarts castle, only the dorms were offlimits to nonstudents. It was difficult to book enough musicians; he'd decided on different types of music for different 'party zones' and Flitcraft was the music director. All of the students who played or sang were pressed into performance, with what local and visiting musicians Horace could call on. 

The only sign of protest against the new regime was his color palate, shades of red and gold, to help the Gryffindors with the hostility and bullying they'd endured lately.

Yes, the Griffs did promulgate bullies, he'd witnessed that enough over the years. But this went beyond payback. Ever since the dreadful Umbridge had taken over, those overlooking the school were hostile, savage, the fails of the school. He knew them all. 

Nott was all right, but he mostly stayed out of sight on his estate and let his heirs deal with the political stuff. The Malfoys were perhaps the most annoying with their haughty arrogance and elegant brutality. 

All of those deplorable wizards and their unpleasant spouses would be at the gala, as he was calling it now. 

Severus had arranged an emergency to come up at the last minute and would be spending the Equinox in Avalon. He trusted Horace to run things as they should be. He saw enough of them, and wanted to consult with the Crones and the Druids about what was happening.

The Faerie military was on high alert after the murder of the unicorn. The Fey had the right to intervene to protect any and all Magical Creatures in certain areas, including the Forbidden Forest. The Centaurs kept in constant contact with the authorities in Avalon, and there was always a unit standing by. 

 

The Crone was tired. It was past her time to leave, but she had to see this one mission to the end. The Prince in Black must be protected. She thought back on the day she met him, that Samhain after Eli had met him. He was all she had expected. She had fallen in love with him, “collateral damage” as the Terran warriors put it. 

Eli could handle it. The other Crones agreed. He was worth any sacrifice. 

 

Aveline fretted about her son, she couldn't help but worry. Emerald and the other Mothers helped, she watched him in the Mirror with them. He was up to any task, she knew the depths of his soul. Lily and Takeshi shared her concern and they consoled each other as best they could. 

Lily was constantly monitoring her son as he was running from the Death Eaters. Takeshi often flew with her on the astral plane, to provide his perspective as a Warrior to the dangers he'd been facing.

She was angry beyond words at how Albus put her son and all the other children at risk, to fight a battle he'd lost when he created Riddle. Takeshi had been aware of Riddle's path of destruction. Many of Riddle's 'walking wounded' casualties of his malignant magic were still in school when he attended. 

How could they not have picked up on the vile collateral damage in his wake? 

 

Abe tried to tell him of the family history, that which Albus would not acknowledge, let alone take responsibility for. He'd liked Gellert more than his brother, truth be told. 

Everybody did. 

Horace still had troubled dreams about Riddle. 

They all did. 

As far as the Ministry was concerned, what happened outside their jurisdiction didn't matter. 

He wouldn't dare come back. They assured themselves this was so.


	3. Neville Awakens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The absence of Harry Potter and his two friends left a power vacuum at Gryffindor, and Neville finds himself in the uncomfortable position, not unlike Claudius, of being the de facto leader of the pack. He didn't ask for or want this, and does the best he can. Everyone underestimates him, including himself.

Neville had blossomed in his studies, particularly Potions and Herbology. He found that as he learned more about plants, their lives and properties, the easier that Potions became. He did better when Horace took over the class, Severus had frightened him so much his hands shook and he forgot details. Horace's kinder and gentler approach was more effective for him. Even though he was losing his fear of the man who had been the bane of his student life so far, he finally realized that education, as with all forms of enlightenment, cost you something. 

He was finally losing his 'baby fat,' as he grew tall, like his father. The girls were paying more attention to him, much to his chagrin, he simply had no idea of what to say or do with most of them.

He'd rather dance with them than talk to them. He was an excellent dancer. He was grateful to Gran for making sure he was good at it. 

He liked being with Luna. They often helped Hagrid take care of his creatures; Luna was 'almost as good as Eli,' in communicating with the various beasts. His favorite activity was riding in the hills around Hogsmeade when he could get a pass to leave the campus. 

That was becoming more difficult, for most of the students. Neville was granted more freedom than most Gryffindors, No one dared speak openly about the affairs of the Headmaster, hinting that the favoritism towards Longbottom was due to the fact that the Faerie soldier girl liked him, and Snape was 'friends with benefits' with the Faerie. Hard to believe that sour old potions master had a girlfriend, especially a Faerie.

 

“Gran doesn't want me going to the Farm anymore,” Neville said to Luna one day after classes, heading for dinner. “Some of the Aurors are keeping the entrance under surveillance. She has a lot of friends in the Ministry, you know. My other grandmother warned me about how I was being tailed.”

Luna nodded. “My dad says the same, everyone is being watched, the watchers are being watched, it's insanity, so the best disguise is to act crazy.”

Neville grinned. “With you is it really an act?”

She laughed. “It's the best way to stay safe, right now. Like you pretending not to be a brave wizard.”

Neville blushed. 

 

Athena Addington also advised caution. Neville had been seeing more of her since becoming a legal adult, and Gran was getting over her long held grudge against her daughter-in-law's mother. 

He had a standing invitation with his maternal grandmother for lunch when he was in the Alley, She was immune from the current tyranny, since she was the head of the law firm that had all of the dirt on just about everyone and their ancestors. None of the famed forensic coven ever revealed any secrets, of course, unless compelled by the Wizengamot, and no one was willing to risk their own secrets coming out, so it's best not to unleash the dogs of law. 

Often Neville and Athena would pack a lunch and share with Alice and Frank at St Mungos. One day they were packing the basket Athena always brought with treats she knew her daughter and son in law loved. She told him about their school days. 

“Grandmother . . . Headmaster Snape is one of your clients, isn't he?”

She gave him her Cold Steel look that made everyone she questioned on the stand shiver, 

“It's just that . . . I wonder if he isn't as bad as some say? I know this sounds crazy, but . . . suppose he was working for the order as a spy?” 

“Neville, if he was, don't you think it's best to keep such speculation to yourself? And you know I can't discuss confidential matters with anyone! He's my CLIENT. This firm has been handling matters for the Morgan family for ages, and now we are the official legal liaison for the Fey, and for legal reasons he is the proxy for the Fey. I may be your grandmother but I am also a PROFESSIONAL.”

Neville blushed and hung his head. “You're right, Grandmother.” 

“Eli told me about what happened in the forest. In confidence, of course.”

Neville looked alarmed. “I have dreams about it . . . I was helpless and when I saw that werewolf coming at me . . .I've been doing some lucid dreaming at the suggestion of Headmaster, to get over that horrible feeling of being at the mercy of the merciless.”

Athena patted his hand. “A common enough fear.” She smiled. “The boys who set you up got what was coming to them, that thug Karkaroff is in charge of them.”

“And I thought I had it bad when I first met Professor Snape!” 

“Have you thought about what you want to do after you graduate?” 

“When I was younger I thought I wanted to follow my parents into their profession, to make sure that they would get justice and I could get my revenge on the one who did this to them. But I hate fighting. I mean, some people are good at it, I'm not. And what they did, in way what you are doing, is fighting! I'm glad that others better suited do that, I know it's just not for me.”

“Well, you love plants, ever think of going into herbology? Professor Sprout says you're her best student.”

Neville looked up and smiled shyly. “You know, I think I'd like that.”

Athena handed Neville a Fairy globe like the one Eli had given him. “You're of age now. So I can share some things with you that Augusta ordered me to keep from you. She meant well, of course. It's an album of pictures of Alice and her friends at Hogwarts. Most of them were taken by Vivienne Turner.”

She activated the device and handed it to Neville. In the beginning the pictures were mostly Alice with her Hufflepuff friends, as well as Vivienne and Eleutheria Jones. He scrolled forward, looking for pictures of Eli. 

Severus was in most of the pictures, always next to Eli. He was almost always smiling. 

“Let's go,” Athena said, taking the sphere and putting it in the tote bag with the book she was reading and special treats, handing the bag to Neville to carry. 

 

Athena strode through the entrance to St Mungo's with her briefcase. She was never challenged anywhere she went, Neville was in awe of her. She was small in stature but strode like her namesake down the middle of the hallways. Rafaela Turner met them in Frank and Alice's room. 

“Professor Lupin sends his regards,” she said to Neville. “I am the werewolf specialist here, it's no honor, no one else wanted it.” She laughed. “The official policy here was to lock them up and if they got out and disappeared, no one would look for them. I'm treating him with some potions I got in Prague.” She grinned. “Off the record, of course.”

 

Athena brought out the orb and placed it in Alice's hands, as Frank came to his wife and put his hands over hers. 

“It's set for private, only they can see the pictures. We have to be VERRRRY discreet here at St Mungo's. Rafaela covers for us, but we have to protect her, as well.”

Neville turned to Rafaela. “You knew Eli le Fey?” 

The healer nodded. “They put her in my room . . . apparently certain people thought the fix was in and she'd be put in Gryffindor, that sorting hat was about as unbiased as a mainstreammedia source like the Daily Pee . . .”

“How is your sister,” Athena said. “I keep up with her writing, even the sports. I miss having her around, with that sharp tongue and sharper wit. We chat from time to time on the crystals. I don't get much of a chance to go to the Ring of Fire anymore, what with things being the way they are.”

“Oh, she's fine, she and Eleutheria Jones are still tight, and remember George Cameron, well, he's out on Mount Shasta most of the time. It was the only way he could get away from his family, he says. I can put you in touch with them if you'd like, Neville.”

 

Athena moved a table in front of Alice and Frank, who sat on the edge of Alice's bed, left hands holding the orb together. Both were smiling. 

“Reliving their past always relieves the signs and symptoms,” Rafaela said. “Their brains are active, but there is no way for them to communicate . . . unless you can do mentalics. And the Fey are banned from the premises 'for the duration' or some such balderdash.”

Neville helped Athena bring out the food which they all shared with his parents. 

“This is so much better than that slop they serve here,” Rafaela said. “I can tell you about that first year, oh, that year was a lot of fun because of Eli.'

“Is it true she beat up Lucius Malfoy twice that year?”

“Uh huh, she got him banned from Hogwart's . . .”

 

Athena announced she had to return to the office to meet Severus, to sign financial documents, of such importance that the Prime Director of Gringott's was bringing them personally. 

After PD departed, they went over the file copies. 

“Still paying off that Umbridge woman?” Athena laughed. 

“Why not? It keeps her in line. She's providing a lot of useful information, and really, what happened to her . . . it was savage, not that she didn't have it coming, still . . .it was worthy of Tommy, that sort of viciousness. Eli was appalled when she heard about it. 'why not just kill that old bint if she's that foul,'. Umbridge had already been deposed, that abduction was just . . . it's a good thing she is on Harry's side, if she'd hooked up with Tommy, they'd be unstoppable.” 

“That demonstrates the ruthlessness of Hermione Granger, shows she's probably the most powerful of the trio.”

“She is. Without her research abilities they would have been defeated easily, her spellcraft is superb. She will stop at nothing to ensure victory.”

Lily's reports to Severus praised the muggleborn witch's talent and courage. “My son is in good hands with her at his back, almost makes up for that ginger haired git . . . no brains whatsoever, he's not and never will be the wizard his father and older brothers are. Maybe if I'd been that brutal in the beginning Riddle would be gone already.”

“She is the alpha lioness of Gryffindor, and it's the lionesses who do all the hard work and ensure the tribe survives. But everyone focuses on the lion, all roar,shaking his mane and striking poses.”

Both of them thought of James and Lily Potter. 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Xeno Lovegood had been reviewing the files about the deaths of the Potters. There wasn't much in the official records, of course. There was no mention of what happened to Harry in the years until he entered Hogwarts, and he'd even asked Albus point blank why that child was sent to 'muggles' when he did have relatives, why not foster the child, as was usually done when a magical child was orphaned? 

He remembered them from school; they were younger and he only noticed them in passing. James Potter had a reputation, due to the scandal his parents caused. He'd been raised by a Squib butler and a elf, well provided for, of course, and the sole heir to the Potter estate. 

He remembered how much Vivienne Turner hated him, she made no secret of her animosity towards certain of her classmates and educators, with evidence. She was very good at investigative reporting. Too good, as it turned out. She was lucky to get to the Ring of Fire before she could be “silenced” for her unmutual conduct. 

 

He worried about his daughter. It wasn't safe at Hogwarts, and he wanted her to drop out, transfer to another school, go on a world tour, but she refused.

He met her whenever possible at the Hogshead. It was the only safe place to discuss things; Abeford was diligent in eliminating Ministry Minions as well as the Riddle gang, as he called them.

“Father, yes, I know it's dangerous but I am not going to run away. You aren't going to stop your mission to get the truth out, don't expect me to run and hide.”

“You know that there are . . . certain people in the Ministry who aren't above attacking children, and I did make myself into a target. I don't want you to get hurt, or killed . . . the casualty rate keeps going up, it's even worse than it was the last time that misbegotten wizard ran amok.”

“He's quite mad, isn't he? I worry about you, too, Father. Everyone is scared. Poor Neville . . . he's so upset about his friends, out on their own, he's got no way to contact them, nobody wants to talk about them, everyone's afraid.”

“Well, speak of the devil . . .look who just walked in!” 

Neville looked around the bar, and headed straight for them. 

“Hello, Luna, Mr Lovegood,' 

“Call me Xeno, Neville, would you join us?” 

 

“I notice you're not afraid of your old nemesis, you and Headmaster are getting along well.”

“I guess I lost my fear of him when I realized there were a lot worse people in the world, I was pretty sheltered, looking back.”

“I can understand why Augusta was so protective of you, after what happened to her son,” Xeno replied. 

“They thought I was a squib so maybe they just didn't want to be embarrassed by me.”

Luna took his hand. “Don't think like that, Neville. You're more than you think you are.”

“I haven't heard from your friends directly,” Xeno said. “They are doing about as well as could be expected, running from Dementors and the hounds of the Ministry, they have allies. That's why I have to keep trying to explain things; most of wizardry just ignore what doesn't affect them immediately and there is so much denial about Riddle. You know what got Vivienne Turner persona non grata? She wrote about his origins. That got some of his early supporters alarmed.

“LORD indeed . . . he murdered his entire family, Wizard and Muggle. Set up a simple minded servant to take the fall for his father's family, they were rich, mother was the most pathetic, abused and neglected magical child you can imagine, she used a love spell or potion, we're not entirely sure, but some enchantment to marry him and he abandoned her in London, with no money, pregnant . . . ran back home to his estate, disgraced the family, it was quite the scandal, still a major topic in the village. Ended up in a muggle orphanage until Dumbledore plucked him out of East End obscurity.”

“What happened to his mother?”

“Died in childbirth. And here's the irony, she was the last direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin himself, oh, how they deteriorated over the centuries, you can't imagine how disgusting the home was. . . absolute squalor. The local populace was unable to do anything about them, they had been there longer than anyone, in fact the village came to be due to the power and wealth of the family, which was gone a long time ago. None of the villagers would go near the place.”

“Love spells never end up well,” Luna said thoughtfully. 

“Of course not, to bend the will of another for your own enjoyment is always wrong. But that girl was not really responsible for her actions; she didn't know any better. Imagine what it was like for her, never taught to use her gifts, overworked and abused, she saw Tom Riddle as her savior.” 

“I read that article,” Luna said. “Father and son looked so much alike, Tom r couldn't deny paternity. Do you suppose that's why Tom jr changed his appearance so much, because he hated having the face of his deadbeat Muggle daddy? Didn't want his name or looks.”

Severus read the article when it was written. Vivienne had hit on many issues that influenced the malignancy of Riddle, and knowing the motives of your opponent gives you power. He knew how to push the right buttons. Know you enemy. And your friend. If only Peter and Lily had known what their 'friend' Pettigrew really was, Eli and he had tried to warn them. Lily loathed the rat faced git, saying once that the only bad thing about being reincarnated so soon was not being able to face him on the other side when he got there. 

Eli offered to take her there when he finally did die. They were both looking forward to that day, to watch Themis and Nemesis to take him into custody.


	4. Chapter 4

“Don't ask me how I know, Neville, but your friends are safe, and no, I won't tell you where they are.”

Athena and Neville were going to visit his parents at St Mungos, and Eli was joining them at the law office, disguised as Athena's ex husband, Alice's father and Neville's grandfather. Eli knew how anxious Neville was about Harry and Hermione, not so much about Ron, which was a common sentiment. He was appalled when Ron had refused to stand up to greet Eli, and his coarse, disrespectful comments about Faeries.

Jonathon Murray preferred not to see his daughter, it disturbed him horribly and he wasn't all that able to deal with adversity and any sort of unpleasantness. He was more than agreeable to allow Eli to go in his place, since he got the social credit of being a loving enough father to visit his poor darling daughter, with his exwife, their differences forgotten in their concern for their only child. Athena informed him ahead of time when they would be visiting, so he would stay completely out of sight. Everyone was being watched these days.

 

“They truly did love each other,” Eli said. “Your father told me that he knew he wanted to marry her the day she came to Hogwarts. He'd been hoping she'd be sorted into Ravensclaw. When he came back from his student exchange year, the year I came there, he finally got the nerve to speak to her. On the field trip to see the cherry blossoms at Torayama.”

She took a folded piece of hemp paper from her pocket, and took out her athame.

“Did you know my mother made this ring, from stones your father bought in Kyoto during his year at Mahoutokoro? It's made of Faerie metal. My mother worked with a team of experts to come up with this potion, to charm the ring to allow them to communicate more effectively.”

“Admin here tried to take that ring when they were first admitted,” Rafaela staid.

Athena laughed. “Yes, but as I pointed out to them when they tried and it blew some defensive spells in their faces, it was their betrothal and marriage ring, and by the old laws and those of Avalon, it could not be removed,.nor could the charms on it be negated, altered, nor circumvented in any way.”

“They never read the fine print,” Eli chortled.

She touched the point of the athame on the center stone. It was a five sided stone, in a variation of the infinity cut. On each of the sides of the center stone, a three sided stone was set with the point outward.

This ring had always fascinated Neville, from the day he was born. The stones formed a repeating motif in his dreams all his life.

“Here goes.” She read the words of the spell, then took a vial and dropped a fluorescent liquid on the ring, that covered the surface of the ring, lighting it up temporarily, then was absorbed into the metal.

“Just hold her left hand and open your mind, you know, like how you felt riding Yojimbo? It will take time to develop a good link. And if you hold your father's hand with the other, with practice, you can join their conversations, and yes, they are in communication on a level that is almost impossible to detect.”

“Will it work for me?” Athena said.

“You're already linked because you're Alice's mother but this should enhance it, genetic magic, you know. Very powerful, self limiting, only first degree relatives can access it, undetectable by your Ministry. You can't reach Frank's mind like Neville should be able to, and Augusta can't use it. Hey, you're going to have to tell me how effective this is, back in Avalon we keep careful track of the magic we use in this realm.”

“What was in that vial?” Neville asked.

“I won't tell you that, you know all Faerie magic is illegal! You can't confess to what you don't know, so don't ask and I ain't telling.”

Neville took his mother's left hand in his. He felt something, he wasn't sure what, a tingling sensation that came from inside his head and ran down his arms. He took his father's hand with his other hand, sitting between their beds. His parents smiled at him.

Neville understood what it was like for them. They were aware, they could hear, read, comprehend their surroundings, but could not react, could not communicate with the outside world. Trapped within their own bodies and minds.

 

For the rest of the visit, they discussed Neville's schoolwork, the problems in the Ministry, and certain significant legal matters. He could tell that his parents followed the conversations. He figured out that he had to stay focused on them or the tenuous psychic connection faded.

Eli returned to the Farm, and Severus called her on the mirror soon after she returned. He wished he could visit the Longbottoms himself but knew that was impossible, so he always grilled Eli when she saw them. He owed them his life, they stood up to the worst Riddle and his deviant mistress could dish out, they did not break.

He did what he could to protect and save them, convincing Riddle that it would be far more devastating to the Order to have the couple returned as babbling idiots, and made sure that they were delivered safely to St Mungos. He'd dosed them with potions to reduce the emotional trauma and physical pain they suffered, kept his game face on, and got them out alive.

He couldn't save everyone, but he did what he could. He'd learned how to make it look as though a prisoner had died, even creating a glamour that would make the person appear VERY dead, with rigor mortis, tissue decomposition, which would allow him to get the 'corpses' to a safe place to remove the spell. His mastery of potions helped him divert the scrutiny of Riddle's minions. He could fog anyone's mind with various methods, but he had to be very, very discreet.

He didn't know until much later he wasn't alone there. He was always being monitored from Avalon, by the Crone herself. She'd delegated many of her duties to her 'undestudy' as they called themselves, the Crone in Waiting.

What most Terran magi don't understand is how many resources are needed to perform magic. It drains the body and the mind, which is why the Fey never used it for mundane tasks. Magic taps into power sources undetectable to most, only the most highly trained adepts understand the delicate balance of energies.

She also had to justify her actions to the Druids, and there were always those antiTerrans who felt that Faerie energy should not be used to benefit those who oppressed them, and still do! She always prevailed, but there was grumbling among the more 'traditional' Druids, who felt that it was a mistake to re-establish contact with the British magi.

The strain was immense, reaching across realms, collecting information, contacting the souls of the victims of Riddle in the realm of the dead was time consuming and enraged her. She worried about Severus, she cried when she found out about Alice. She remembered Frank from the couple's honeymoon in Avalon. They'd taken a cabin on a trader ship, after partying at the Beltane festival. She remembered how much she'd loved sailing the seas of Faerie herself; she hadn't been able to do that for decades.

She wished she could stop the Terrans from their suicide agenda. By creating a magical elite, and using magic for mundane tasks, overusing and wasting it in power struggles, and by isolating the rest of the world and people from sharing, they were essentially spending their magical capital. Much like how the nonmagical Terrans were destroying themselves by overbreeding and overusing natural resources. Magic, too, was a 'natural resource.'

Just as they wouldn't pay attention to how their population explosion was destroying the very system they needed to live. They'd had plenty of warning, but just wouldn't see what was right in front of their faces.

Oh well. So it goes. You can lead a Terran to enlightenment, but you can't make 'em think.

 

Severus disliked the Malfoy clan. Lucius was a pompous, upper class twit. He was aware of Narcissa's involvement in Takeshi's murder, and even though she was not of sound mind and not entirely responsible for her actions, he loathed her. He found Draco to be an annoying twit, whose potential had been spoiled in the cauldron by the toxicity of his parents.

He'd been ambushed on his way out of the Ministry by the Malfoys, who demanded to speak with him about his 'special friend.' They were joined by Nott and Rodolpho LeStrange,

“My son tells me that the Longbottom boy is spending time with her and even visiting the Farm, do you think that's wise, all things considered?” Narcissa said.

“What, you don't think I can keep those Faerie ladies under control?” Severus said with an elegant leer. “I was able to get them to give me power of attorney. Have no fear, dear Narcissa, as long as I give Eli what she wants, they have no reason to bother with our realm.”

“But wasn't she friends with his mother? Doesn't she hold that against us, against you?”

“She is a soldier, you know. She understands what 'collateral damage' is. She's working off any guilty feelings by keeping an eye on her friend's child,” He smiled. He knew how much both of them wanted Eli. He loved to taunt them with hints of his erotic activities in Avalon, how sex with the Fey spoiled sex with Terran females. “You know, the same chakra that rules sex is what rules warriors. Not to mention those thighs. So strong from all that riding, you know.”

Lucius could only imagine.

“Besides, the library at the Farm has material we don't have at Hogwarts. I like to stay ahead of the curve. Neville makes a good courier. What a pity about the boy; you'd think with parents that powerful, their son would have some ability as a wizard. Such a disappointment, did you know that for years they thought he was a Squib? As it turns out, he is good at Potions and Herbology, which don't require much magical talent. He'll probably be able to take over the family business from his grandmother.”

He looked at Narcissa, completely guileless, “Not to mention, none of the Fey have any use for the Ministry after what happened to Takeshi Morgan, and how it was never solved. You have to give him credit, the treaties he wrote for them were flawless. We could have used his talent.”

Severus had done well in his training with the Genbu and Druids. He never gave up even the slightest hint of what he felt inside, he could control his heart rate, blood pressure, and other vital signs that betrayed infiltrators and spies. His voice control never wavered. He'd learned a technique similar to hypnosis using his eyes, and picked up microexpressions and other clues to detect lies.

Narcissa had no such training, and she had to suddenly excuse herself to run to the lady's room to cover her distress.

“You remember, I took control of the Morgan money when I was seventeen, that's how much they trust me.”

“You think we can really trust the Faerie neutrality pact?” LeStrange drawled.

“Of course. They truly are that . . . honest? I suppose that would be the most accurate word. They truly will not lie.”

“That would make them easy to control,” Lucius mused.

Nott smiled. “One would think so . . .” he said, well aware of how Lucius and Riddle both managed to fool themselves so readily. Their mistake was in thinking that they were stronger and that they felt entitled to power over others. The Nott family had exploited the entitled, who tended to hoist themselves on their own petard, a Muggle term he was fond of. He felt that Muggles were not as stupid and easily controlled as Riddle felt, after all, if they were, how could they have completely dominated Wizardy when they were still basically barbarians? Forced them into a sort of exile, into hiding like rats in the wainscoting. Wizardy thought they could beat the Muggles down, and that hubris destroyed them.

 

The inability to face, let alone deal with, one's inherent weaknesses was a flaw easy to profit from.

That was the secret of the Nott empire. They never sought power, only profited from those who had it. When you have that much money, you have the power. As long as you stay behind the scenes to make a quick getaway. Play both sides of the fence, for insurance. Keep things discreet.

Lucius knew of his wife's many crimes and misdemeanors, her 'secret diary' was no secret; the hand written and elegantly illustrated tomes were all familiar to him. He easily overrode her privacy charms. If Severus only knew . . . but Severus did know. The more he studied Mentalics in Avalon, the better he was getting at reading minds, and he had access to all of the forensic files the Druids kept.

“I don't think we have to worry about the Fey, Lucius. It's understandable that she would loathe the very agency that killed her father, how do you think Draco would feel if you were murdered by someone in authority?”

Lucius snorted. He knew how his son would feel about it. As overjoyed as he'd been when his own father died young. He was the Lord of Malfoy now! He did not shed a tear; his father had been either indifferent or cruel to his sons. He liked to play them against the other, to make sure that the next heir was the strongest. It was the Malfoy tradition.

“Speaking of keeping people under control, those Carrows need to learn a bit of restraint. It's not going to look good if more parents pull their children out of Hogwarts. A bit of discretion goes a long way.” He looked pointedly at LeStrange.

Nott smiled. “It does make you look like a benevolent head master, when you intervene to soften the attacks of the Carrows. After the Umbridge debacle, it's important to have a headmaster who is seen to be as benevolent as old Dumbledore, not that he was . . .”

“He was excellent at dissembling and equivocating,” Severus replied.

Narcissa rejoined them. From the look of her, she'd had a good shot of some mood stabilizing potion in the lady's room. Severus smiled, bowed, and excused himself, and returned to Hogwarts.

He was drawn to the place where he'd killed Albus, now offlimits to everyone except him. Rank had its privilege, he'd earned it. The view was spectacular. He could see the lights of the village as the sky darkened.

Rank also had its responsibilities. Including a pile of documents that needed tending. He sighed deeply, as he scanned the horizon. He apparated to is office, grabbed the documents, and went to his inner sanctum. He'd call in Eli, she was great with paperwork from her army days.

She'd been reluctant to spend time in his rooms at first, but he'd explained that there was no rule against it, and since no one ever saw her come or go, no one could make a rule against it. He called her on the mirror.

“Meet me on the astral plane, do a patrol of the grounds and interior, then I have some work for you.”

“Give me 10 minutes,” she said. “I'll bring you Lily's latest report, and the vids from the raven cams.”

Severus lay down on his bed and floated out to meet Eli's astral body. They flew around the perimeter, then inspected the outbuildings. They checked the halls and common rooms. Neville was in the library, studying with a Ravensclaw girl.

“Who's that?”

“Simone Armitage, Very promising witch. You'd like her.”

“He's finally coming out of his shell. I told you he was a late bloomer.”

“He's been forced into assuming a leadership role and he's handling it well. Augusta gives me holy hell about the goings on here, but I think she may be on to me. She's a battle axe, and I mean that in a good way. Tough and smart, levelheaded and won't back down from a fight.”

“She wants vengeance on those who harmed her son, and she knows you didn't do it, that horrid LeStrange bitch was responsible. Everyone knows what she is.”

 

They went to Severus's sanctum, and Eli apparated.

“I wish I could learn how to do that,” he said. “I'm still amazed at how no one in Wizardry has bothered to learn astral projection. They don't even look for it.”

“It is convenient,” she said. “And Terrans tend to be blind to that which they don't want to see. You know that most of your species don't remember what they saw on the astral plane, or they think it was just a dream. Sometimes they can end up in unknown realms, I guess you'd say, and they get infected with a meme of some sort . . . and they call it inspiration.”

She went to the desk and sorted the documents. “You get started on the urgent letters that need a response. Is this a list of new rules and regulations?”

He nodded. “Worse than that Umbridge woman, micromanaging everything . . . but banning Defense Against and just teaching Dark Arts?  Whose idea was that?”

“The theory is that if you know it you can defend against it, some such codswallop.  They've taken discipline from this office and given it to the Carrows.  Remember them?    And all of the new rules mean more disciplinary reports, all of which have to have duplicates sent to various offices in the Ministry . . . what a colossal waste of parchment.”

They worked quickly, and soon all of the messages that needed sending out were dispatched to overnight owls, copies initialed and forwarded, and originals filed.

“OK, now let's take a look at the latest report on Harry,” she said, removing an envelope from the inside pocket of her jacket. “I haven't had a chance to read it.”

 

The Crones had another ally within Hogwarts, Professor Sybill Trelawney. When she'd been hired, Cordelia invited her to dinner at the Farm, and Eli had presented her with a black mirror, set in a Faerie metal frame. It was one of her most prized possessions, especially since it allowed her to communicate with the seers in Avalon, both the Crones and the Druids.

Because of her reputation of a flake and a fraud, she wasn't watched as closely as the other professors. She was not considered to be a threat, but Riddle wanted her contained, subject to ridicule so that her prophecies would be ignored. He was so effective that he began to believe it himself, forgetting that it was her prophecy that led him to Harry.

She barricaded herself in her tower, behind clouds of incense.

They had no idea she was watching them.

Riddle had no idea that Albus set him up with that 'prophecy' with a bit of misdirection, sending him after Harry instead of the one who was to end his life by destroying the last vestige of his soul.

Prophecies are slippery by nature and easy to misinterpret. Even if you do get it right, it's even easier to do the wrong thing to prevent catastrophe.

It was always Neville. Albus's grand plan was to sacrifice Harry, and probably James and Lily, to protect Neville. Albus had even partially Oblivated his mind, to convince those around him that he was a Squib. Riddle would think his nemesis was gone, and would get overconfident. Albus would carefully tutor Neville, and no one would be the wiser, until the boy could be unleashed to destroy the dark lord.

Then the plan went astray, as plans tend to do.

If only Lily hadn't decided to trust Pettigrew and changed plans at the last minute. If only they hadn't left their wands out of reach. If only Lily hadn't blocked the spell. If only Pettigrew hadn't managed to escape by faking his own death. Albus had all of eternity now to consider how he'd made so many mistakes. At the time, he thought he'd been doing the right thing, he'd been daft not to recognize what was going on. Hubris would do that to you every time. Each of Riddle's victims faced off with him when they'd crossed over, it was part of the sentence he'd been given by Themis.

Albus didn't think anyone knew of how he'd muddle Sybill's message, and since she was unable to remember what she'd said, the secret was safe, so long as the copy he'd stashed in the Ministry was never found. He should have destroyed it himself. But he'd wanted that final 'gotcha' on Riddle . . . The Great Wizard Dumb . . . Old . . . Bore . . . he'd misunderstood the meaning of it; prophecies are like that.

That's why in Avalon, the Crones and Druids analyze all visions of the future collectively, to reduce the chance of misinterpretation. Albus had pretty much set himself up and the backblast destroyed so many lives. Keeping secrets, misleading others, he was forced to see the results of his arrogance and listen to the cries of the 'collateral damage.'

It shamed him to realize he was seen as a martyr and a wise man, when he was in fact a collaborator; he created the dark lord himself. Then when he couldn't control the whirlwind he'd propagated, he hunkered down and waited for the children whose lives he had almost destroyed fight his battle for him. The Children's Crusade.


	5. Chapter 5

Neville had told Eli about how Alecto Carrow had been bullying him, “even worse than that Umbridge woman,” he told her not long before the Gala during a library visit. Eli had been following his academic career via Minerva and Albus, who felt it was only natural that she would take an interest in his future, since his parents weren't there for him. Alice had been her friend, a staunch ally when others were openly anti Faerie. Augusta wouldn't admit it, but was grateful for the help Eli was providing her in protecting Neville. Now that he was of age, she couldn't stop him, so she just ignored it.

“They frighten me. The woman is particularly stupid, and her class on Muggles . . . she puts them down as if they aren't even human, like how Umbridge spoke of centaurs . . . you're so right about how all creatures great and small, magical or not, are deserving of being treated as you would be treated yourself. Her brother is even worse. He's teaching Dark Arts, not Defense Against! I read the course outline, he wants to teach us how to conjure fiendfyre, even . . . and the Cruciatus Curse, no limit dueling, and I don't think he's as good as he thinks he is. Like that twat Lockhart! I'll never forget how Professor Snape took him out when he was fool enough to throw down a challenge. Guess he started to believe his own lies about himself.”

“I would imagine they're out to get you because of your association with Harry. Severus was forced to have them as deputies to handle discipline, and he's not allowed to override their decisions. Mind you, I am telling you this in confidence. They are the sort who always get too big for their britches. Even though I was a Slytherin, they talked a lot of trash about me, when they thought I wouldn't overhear or find out! I guess that's because they are half-bloods and are embarrassed by their heritage, they were never accepted by the elitists. They are basically toadies, sycophants, willing to do dirty deeds to suck up to the nobs.”

Neville laughed.

“Look, I'm not going to lie to you, you're under siege right now. They are out to get you. I can do what I can to protect you, but you know I cannot interfere with Hogwarts and staff. I think you're tough enough to take abuse from them, and they will lose in the end.”

Neville looked at her. He thought of his friends, alone, on the run, cold and hungry.

“You're up to the fight, so are your friends. Remember this always. Riddle will lose. He cannot have immortality. No one, no thing lasts forever, not the planet, not the sun, nothing. He's playing a loser's game. He is surrounded by the duplicitous, the deceitful, the deplorable, such an army cannot win. Just not possible. His magic is powerful, but even he can fight the forces of life, death, and all of that . . . I'm getting too serious here. He will fail, all any of us can do at this time is to try and minimize the casualty list.”

“it's like how not even Thor could beat Elli . . . [http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/bulf/bulf38.htm]” Neville said thoughtfully.

“I'll do what I can, of course, but things have to be kept very private. You cannot tell anyone, not even your Headmaster, what we are doing. If he needs to know anything about you, I'll tell him”

Neville nodded. “I know now . . . he's not my enemy. But he can't been seen taking my side, so he's still pretty . . .frosty to me. some of the students say, Headmaster is cutting me slack only because I'm your little pet, the child you never had, that sort of tripe.”

“Oh, let them talk, it's amusing. And gives us both cover stories. There is something I need to ask of you. You're of age so you can consent. I'd like to use my mentalics on you. That means I will send you messages and be able to know what you're thinking, but I'll give you a warning.”

“Of course. I give you my free and full consent.”

Neville heard a chiming sound inside his head.

“That's the signal. Let's practice. It will be very difficult for you to send me messages back without a lot more time and effort. Which we may not have.”

 

In the afterlife, for lack of a better term, Albus was forced to take in some of the real time events using scrying technology perfected by the Ovates that could cross the time barrier between the realms of the quick and the dead. He could see the past, the present, the future. The psychic trauma was intense and unremitting.

The fallout from the murder of Lily was that instead of having to worry about protecting just Neville from Riddle, he had to figure out how to stash Harry quickly. Lily's sacrifice had made Harry a part of Riddle, a living horcrux, as it turned out. He hadn't anticipated that any of the Potters would survive.

Albus, like Riddle, didn't realize just how powerful love combined with courage could be. That is because neither had ever loved anyone, and didn't know what real courage was. . He had others do the killing for him, he caused others to be killed, at least Riddle was honest enough to do it himself.

Where to put the boy? Who could be trusted? He didn't dare put Harry in the control of someone who might take advantage of him and  his family's money. James Maughold and Lavinia Potter had relocated to the other side of the planet after the feud that resulted from their marriage. They had turned over the entire estate to their only child, knowing that neither side of the interfamily conflict would hurt the Potter heir. They didn't want to deny him his heritage and share their exile.

It would be simple enough to tell them that because of the current climate of fear they should stay away and that if they took custody of Harry it would endanger him, and them. No, wouldn't it be better if Harry was completely hidden out of sight with a Muggle family, his mother's sister? That might work. They'd buy it.

He'd never met Lily's sister but he knew there were some hard feelings between them. Petunia had first ridiculed her sister for being weird, but when it came out she was a witch, was extremely jealous of her sister's gift. Lily's mother had mentioned to him when they'd met the day of the wedding that Petunia had be upset, heartbroken that she couldn't come to it. But surely she would love the child for her sister's sake, right?

Or maybe she wouldn't and he'd grow up sad, lonely and neglected, like the proverbial red haired stepchild? Well, that's not all bad. If Harry was needed as a sacrifice, he'd be more willing to be one.

The Potters would know, they'd figure out that Neville was the real prophecied one, Harry was now an integral part because he was the boy who survived. He and Neville would have to combine efforts to destroy what remained of Thomas Marvolo Riddle, AKA Lord Voldemort.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~``

 

For the week before Horace's Equinox Ball, Minerva had been drilling the students in social dancing. She shanghai'd Neville into coaching, and invited Yuri to help her. It was hard teaching advanced social dancing without a trained partner, and Severus had declined her offer, that would be fraternizing.

Yuri drove the class like a Marine, and managed to improve the technique of the dancers noticeably. All of them were nursing sore muscles, but had improved their confidence a great deal. He choreographed a piece for them to greet the dignitaries, simple, but elegant. The girls were asked to bring in their outfits, to see if they 'worked' in performance.

“A great costume can make or break a performance,” he said. “You must be free of all restrictions below the waist. Dancing in a long skirt is an art in itself, and you must all practice on your own in whatever it is you will wear. For you boys, make sure you have on something presentable beneath your outer robes, and take them off to dance. Really. It is permissible, even at the most formal events, to remove the outer layer for dancing.”

Horace nodded. “White shirts, of course, waistcoats, remember, your main job is to show off your lady and her outfit.”

“Let me show you,” Yuri said. “This is how you walk out to the floor.” He took Minerva's hand, and the walked to the center of the open floor.

Neville was surprised at how elegant, how . . .well . .. beautiful she was, as she spun around into the closed position with Yuri. He'd never really thought about her as a person, she was his beloved professor and head of his house, of course, but he never thought about her private life. She was so graceful, smiling at Yuri as they moved.

The Greengrass Viper, as he called Daphne Greengrass, was an excellent dancer, and she'd coerced Horace into putting him next to her as her plus one after she'd been invited to sit at the High Table with her godfather, one of the Ministry bigwigs who wanted to see for themselves how the new regime was working out at Hogwarts.

Much as he disliked the girl, Neville had to admit Daphne was a superb dancer. Daphne, for her part, felt that Neville was just too middle class. Not Our Kind, Dear. Pureblood, but really, after what happened to his parents . . . not to be considered for anything serious. Not to mention he'd been friends with that Harry Potter. For this event, she needed someone who could dance. None of those Slytherin boys came even close to Neville.

And she really preferred girls. Just like Mother.

She had the perfect dress already. She'd gotten it in Paris and hadn't had a chance to wear it. It was made of the most expensive material, spider silk. The process of spinning it was a secret known only to a group of elves who lived in the deepest enchanted forests. They actually managed to domesticate spiders, who were more than happy to provide the silk they would have used in webs. The elves fed them well.

The silk was amazingly strong and so fine the threads could barely be seen, which meant it could be woven into material that was so light it floated, and was translucent, with refractive properties that surrounded the garment with an aurora effect. It was dyed in Theatrical Pink, perhaps the most flattering color to dancers under the lights. The bodice was tightly fitted and covered with tiny faceted crystals, and the floor length, round skirt with a short train was worn over matching tights. Bias cut, of course. She would carry the train on a loop over her thumb, so that the material swirled around her hips and if she extended her arms it would have a most artistic effect under the lights.

The bolero jacket was her treasure, completely covered in crystal beadwork, matching the shoes she was wearing, specially made by goblin couturiers to allow the beads to be arranged into different patterns with a simple spell.

This was a dress to let the audience know who was the prima. Daphne was considering whether or not to pursue a career on the stage. Her godparents promised to send a video of her, in class working with Yuri, and of her dancing at the gala, to Madame Prince. She wanted an audition as soon as she graduated.

Yuri Zhukov thought she had a good chance. He noted she was very dedicated, took instruction well, good lines, and excellent musicality. Neville was not overly endowed with ability, but overcame that with dedication to the art, how to control the body and mind to let the magic of music transform the individual.

Where he was from, music and dance magic were a part of every witch's education. It's a difficult art to master, but everyone can learn a little of it. He told Minerva how jealous he was of her for having the experience of participating in a dance ritual in Avalon.

“I've traveled the world, Magic and Muggle, and have seen how magic is understood and used very differently,” Yuri said as they were chatting at the Broomstick, in the Hogwart's Faculty Corner, near the entrance that gave them a clear view of the floor and a clear path to the exits. These days no one felt safe, you had to be vigilant at all times.

“Why is it, do you suppose, that your tribes don't dance? Most do . . . you use dance for limited social interaction, and entertainment, like Madame Prince and her troupe. She does have a good grasp of the potential and practice, I suppose that's why she is based in Prague. You're wasting your talent here, Minerva.”

“And you aren't, hiding in Nocturne Alley and flitting about the entire planet?”

“At times like this I like to keep moving and observing. And letting people think I'm just a harmless dancer, more concerned with my looks and my audience than politics. Like the song goes, 'I'm on my toes, 'cause heaven knows, a moving target's hard to hit.' In life's ballet, I'm not the dying swan'” _[While truckin' down / The road of life / Although all hope seems gone...I just move on // When I can't find a single star / To hang my wish upon / I just move on... / I move on / / I run so fast! / A shotgun blast / Can hurt me not one bit // I'm on my toes! 'Cause heaven knows / A movin' target's hard to hit! // So as I play / in life's ballet / I'm not the dyin' swan / I just move on.../ I move on // Just when it seems / I'm out of dreams / And things have got me down.../ i don't despair! / i don't go there! / i hang my bonnet out of town! // So there's no doubt / I'm well cut out / To run life's marathon.../ I just move on.../ I just move on... // So light of foot! / I can't stay put! / I just move on! / Yes, I move on.}.. ]_

Horace was thrilled with how improved the dancers were. Daphne was superb. He was pressuring Severus into inviting Eli, he wanted her feedback on the dancing, knowing that her opinion on Daphne's talent would carry weight with Madame Prince.  Neville began to realize he might have misjudged Daphne, because of her family and her house.  She was a superb dancer and worked very, very hard, and was helpful to him, showing him how to improve his skills.  daphne, for her part, liked him quite a bit by the time of the party.  

Horace had decided how to seat everyone on the high table, expanded for this event to allow more people to be seated. There were there to be seen by the lesser dignitaries and students, after all. Severus was in the center, in place of honor, as due his rank. On his left, Eli, then Neville, Daphne, her godparents, him, Madame Pince, who had the rare magic of being able to make anyone behave, a handful of Ministers, then the Carrows. Minerva was on Severus' right side, with the other staff members with their plus ones and the few Ministry people he liked.

 

One day Severus was working with Horace in the supply room. Horace turned to him, and said, “Yes, I know, Eli doesn't want to be here, and you don't but it is in your job description . . . I truly need her to put the Carrows in their place. Only she can do that.”

Severus rolled his eyes, shrugged his shoulders. “You think she takes orders from me? You know better, Horace.”

“Ask if she'd do it for her old professor. A personal favor.” He handed Severus a letter in scented pale green paper. “A formal invitation.”

The next day Horace got the RSVP. “I will not be dancing, of course.” written on the bottom.

“Dress to be scary,” Severus instructed her.

She chose over the knee black boots, severely tailored jacket made of purple silk twill with matching skirt, made of two triangles that fitted over her hips, buttoned on the side, allowing her to ride easily. She wore her athame in a jeweled scabbard on a black snakeskin belt. Over it she wore a black velvet opera cape, lined in green satin.

She wore her hair tightly curled, and held back with a diamen of gold set with alexandrites. She used a lot more makeup than usual, she was playing a part, the ice cold warrior goddess, implacable and impervious. She had the skill to destroy anyone with a glance and a raised eyebrow. She was more than willing to use the negative stereotypes of the Fey to her advantage.

She stood on Severus's left side as he greeted the innumerable guests to the main hall, bowing politely with a disinterested smile on her face. Amycus Carrow made the mistake of trying to engage her in conversation and brag of his abilities.

“I've reformed Dark Arts completely. I've heard how you were better than the instructors when you were a student.”

Eli's smile widened. Severus held back a laugh. That poor git was in for it now.

“I was informed of the coursework you've assigned, I have to admit you're . . . ambitious, but is it wise to teach students to use fiendfyre? Hardly any of you Terrans understand fire magic, and it's so easy for that to get out of control, I remember hearing of more than a few tragic incidents of self incineration. We don't use it; we use specialized fyre spells for certain tasks, and of course, we worked with the fyredragons in the war,” Eli said, her voice dripping with condescension.

“Not to brag, but I'm quite an expert in fyremagic myself,”

Eli drawled, “I'm sure.”

Alecto joined the conversation. Eli gave her a look, up and down, with just enough of a sneer to make a point without being obvious. Alecto realized she was overdressed; her ballgown was out of place, and she never danced, anyway. She realized she was the only professor not in scholastic robes. Why had she decided to wear this?

Eli knew. It was because Alecto never had a dress like that in her student days, and wasn't asked to any dances, always attending solo, with some of the other less socially graceful students. She blamed her half-blood status, something she was ashamed of. The feeling of inadequacy made her lash out at Muggles and Muggleborns, needing to make herself feel better by putting down others.

It was a gorgeous dress, as Eli told Alecto. But it just didn't suit. The emerald green made her look jaundiced, and she just didn't have the right body for the style, nor could she walk gracefully managing the skirt.

“Are you challenging my brother to a duel? As I recall, you didn't duel when you were in school,” she said.

“Oh, I don't think it would be appropriate, nor safe, to be throwing fire here, fiendfyre can be tricky, as I recall from my studies. I never dueled because it wouldn't be fair.”

Minerva and Pomona exchanged glances. Hagrid went to inform Horace. Severus kept a stiff upper lip with difficulty.

“Well, how about a demonstration, outside?” Alecto said. Amycus looked a bit nervous, hoping he could get it to work . . . sometimes it didn't. He wished his sister would shut up.

“Do we have time? I know the students are planning to give us a performance of their musical and dancing ability,” Eli said.

“It won't take long,” said Alecto with a smirk.

Minerva spoke softly to Severus, “This will not end well, aren't you going to put a stop to this?”

Severus looked at her. The corners of his mouth were twitching slightly, and his eyes were smiling. “Oh, I think Eli can handle this,” he said.

Eli smiled with her mouth, and said, “Well, I'd like to see that, but perhaps we could stage a bit of educational entertainment for the students? Shall we step outside, so they can watch? The festivities are not scheduled to begin for another fifteen minutes.”

Alecto enthusiastically agreed. Eli led the Carrows out of the main hall and to the entry to the building, to lawn sloping down to the lake. Some of the students, dressed in their finest, joined Minerva, Pomona, and Hagrid. Severus stayed in the main hall; he'd link up with Eli and get a memory transfer later.

Neville was in the group of students, along with his 'date' Daphne.

Gossip moved faster than thought, and the students soon knew what was to happen. More students gathered at the windows to watch.

Horace, who had been finishing setting up the tables, decided to ignore it. If that dreadful creature ruined his party, he'd settle it later, but he hoped no one would get hurt. He'd been shocked when the Carrows had outlined their coursework for the term. Both had been poor to average students, and he felt badly for the students, who'd be shortchanged by having such unqualified instructors.

 

It took three tries to get the spell correct. The fiendfyre sputtered, then roared into life.

As all practitioners know, the hard part about fiendfyre is controlling it. Alecto wasn't as good as he thought he was, and he had a moment of doubt, which almost proved fatal. The face of the fyredragon formed in front of him, and he attempted to turn it away, and out of pique, at Eli.

Eli stood motionless. The fyredragon did not attack her, but instead, bowed, and immediately split into two and soared into the air, straight down to the Carrows.

A stifled scream escaped Alecto, as she fumbled for her wand. The fyredragons both split again, encircling the Carrows.

Eli laughed, pulled out her athame, pointed it at the fyre, then made a small motion, and the fyre coalesced into a pillar that rose into the evening sky like a rocket, fading quickly from sight.

“That was fun,” she said, replacing her athame in its jeweled holster. She strode back into the main hall, and took her place at the table, as Horace got all of the dignitaries in their seats and served them all some of his special sherry.

“I could have gotten it under control,” Amycus muttered under his breath.

Those who had witnessed the demonstration were all making jokes at the Carrow's expense, and they were quite aware of this. They would get payback from any of the students who dared to speak of it. “You need a lot more work on that,” Alecto snarled quietly. “But she probably cheated somehow. How the hell did she turn the fyre without doing a thing? Must be that dagger they all carry.”

Amycus vowed to himself to stay as far away from that Faerie as he could, as his sister stewed in jealousy, as that Fey bitch dared to be so beautiful, fearless and talented. How had she done that trick, making the fyre bow to her? Fiendfyre was sentient. She was suddenly very glad that the treaties with Avalon forbade any involvement in Ministry politics. That bitch could take on the Dark Lord himself, she thought with a shiver of fear. She hoped that he would not probe her mind to find this heresy, this treason to his lordship. She'd make sure he would never question her fealty.

Horace got everyone seated quickly, and cued the music. The doors opened and the student dancers entered, led by Daphne and Neville.

Daphne was able to capture the attention of the entire room. Conversations halted, food was ignored when the dance began. Her outfit refracted the light, the crystal beadwork sparkling and the spider silk shimmering, bathing her in a cocoon of light.

“Neville certainly has improved, but he's not as good as you,” Eli whispered to Severus. “Daphne is excellent, good enough to audition with your grandmother.”

“Yes, she is,” he whispered back.

Yuri and Minerva had choreographed a group waltz, the couples forming spirals and circles, working the entire floor.

Mr Fitch had outdone himself on the lighting. She leaned over to Daphne's godparents, whispering, “I'll send Madame Prince a letter tomorrow. She's amazing.”

 

The performance ended to loud applause. Neville and Daphne came to the table and sat down.

“Daphne, you're incredible,” Eli said. “Neville, you've gotten a lot better! Even did the lifts perfectly.”

Nevilled blushed. “Yuri really helped me.”

Minerva came over to congratulate the pair. “You both exceeded expectations. Do you think you could get me a copy of the video?”

“Of course!” Daphne said. “I was planning to give you one anyway.”

Eli and Severus planned their escape. Right on cue, the Slytherin matron burst from the side door to the high table, and ran to Severus.

“Sir, sorry to disturb you . . . but we need you and Hagrid to help out immediately, there is a disruption in the Forbidden Forest and Firenze asked you to attend . . . to avoid an Incident . . .” she said breathlessly.

Severus nodded. “Take my place. Horace, you're my understudy, this is your party, take care of it. Eli, lets get to the gate and get the horses.”

Eli, Severus, and Hagrid left out of the side door, Hagrid running to the gateway to the Forest near his compound. He had to see to the animals in his care and then would join them.

Eli and Severus dashed to the gate, Eli exiting to summon Yojimbo and Patton, who were already waiting at the Farm, saddled and with their swords. The portkey device delivered the two horses, Eli jumped on Yojimbo and they went to Severus, who had instructed the guards to say nothing to any of the guests, leaped on Patton, and they galloped off.

Hagrid had secured the creatures in his barn and their enclosures, calming them, as Eli and Severus arrived. He hoped no one got harmed, and was almost ashamed to admit he was glad for any excuse to get out of that party.

 

“You stay here, on the campus,” Severus said. “We can handle it.”

Firenze was waiting for them on the other side of the gate. The cover story, which they intended Hagrid to hear, was that the centaurs were hunting some humans who were intruding on their territory, and were intending on killing them on sight. Take no prisoners. The humans were trespassing, and it was called the Forbidden Forest for good reason.

“I can give you their location and you can beat the centaurs, take them into custody, they will respect your authority, Eli.” He swatted both horses on the rumps. “Now go!” He nodded to Hagrid and told him, “I'll let you know what happened.” He'd return after the party was over to inform Hagrid all was well, and the humans had been removed and placed into custody 'for their own protection.' and removed from the district. Hinting that they were 'just muggles' anyway . . . and up to no good.

Firenze dashed off into the night. He enjoyed the prank.

Eli and Severus portkeyed to the Farm, then went through the mists to Avalon for the party there, returning in a few hours.

 

Severus stayed until the middle of the night, then they returned to the Farm, ran through the night to the Hogwarts gateway, Eli and the horses turning back, her cape flying, sparks from the special horseshoes as they galloped down the road to the Farm.

Eli loved the theatrical effect of the sparkler horseshoes.

 

The party was a huge success. Horace explained that Severus and Eli were called away to oversee a 'security issue' and they were the best at this task, after all. Filius outdid himself, the music was superb and there was dancing in all of the halls. All of the students not invited to the main hall joined the festivities in the Commons Room and hallways, even the library was opened up for those who wished to 'rest their ears' and talk quietly.

It should be remembered that Horace was a potions master and always preferred music, dancing, and laughter to polite infighting and social maneuvering, and who better than the major domo of this even to make sure that everyone had certain additives to their beverages to ensure congeniality?

Sybill opened her tower sanctuary to friends and favored students, and they had their own gathering of those who respected divination, which eliminated the more noxious and vexing of the guests. Seers and prophets are never honored by those they were trying to protect.

All of the guests and students gossiped about the fiendfyre demonstration, some comparing Amycus to that blowhard Lockhard.

 

The next day was Saturday, and Severus called for a staff meeting at lunchtime, their food would be served in his office.

“I know all of you want to know why I was called away. Hagrid assured me no trespassers came to Hogwarts,” he said, once everyone was seated. “Eli and I caught the people involved and transported them to a secure location. I am not at liberty to give you any further information on the identity of the intruders, so don't ask me.”

Horace smiled. “You missed an excellent party, everyone enjoyed themselves immensely.

 “I don't think it's a good idea to have any more large parties, especially with so many dignitaries invited, it's just too tempting a target, and it's best for me to be keeping an eye on things and not attending any more. I can't be going to parties when Hogwarts and the students are at any risk.”

Minerva nodded. “It's probably best to keep parties to a minimum right now, perhaps just some dances for the students.”

“I see your point,” Horace said. “I'll just do some Slug Club socials, and let's make the Yule Ball a bit less formal.”

Neither of the Carrows spoke at the meeting.


End file.
